'Feared' Mamelodi taxi boss hands himself over to police as net closes

Mamelodi taxi boss Vusi "Khekhe" Mathibela handed himself over to the police in Germiston on Tuesday evening.

The police had obtained a warrant for his arrest on Monday in connection with allegations of extortion, intimidation and assault.

SowetanLIVE reported on Tuesday that police minister Bheki Cele said at the weekend that police had found only Mathibela's "warm shoes" when they went to arrest him at his home.

SowetanLIVE previously reported that Mathibela had been accused of involvement in an alleged extortion ring in Mamelodi. Local business people were allegedly forced to pay protection fees. Among his alleged victims were taxi owners who apparently had to pay him R200 a week per minibus.

Cele and police commissioner Khehla Sitole visited Mamelodi on February 25 and March 1. The police arrested six suspects linked to the alleged crimes on March 8.

Three suspects, Zwelibanzi Ngubane, Justice Khumalo and Asante Alfred, were charged with possession of unlicensed firearms and appeared in the Alexandra Magistrate's Court on Monday where they were released R2,000 bail each. Their case was postponed to April.

The fourth and fifth suspects, Elias Skosana and Kompi Stemmer Monageng, were charged with extortion, intimidation and assault and appeared in the Pretoria Magistrate's Court on Monday.

The police released the sixth suspect pending further investigations on a charge of possession of an unlicensed firearm.